The end is so close, dear friends! Most of you have one more week with your sweet babies and then you get a well-deserved break! But before that can happen, there is a holiday party you need to pull off. 😉 I have been loving ALL things reindeer this season so I dreamed up how […]
‘Tis the season for some gingerbread activities! I know when December rolled around, I was always so excited because the students were eager to learn through some new engaging units–Gingerbread, Reindeer, and Christmas Around the World were some of our favorites! I always loved teaching thematically, but here’s the deal: I had to be able […]
Fall is definitely here and that means it’s time to hit the ground running with more fun thematic lessons. No matter where you are in your curriculum, learning about relevant topics will always increase your classroom engagement. In the fall, I like to fill our lessons with Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, and turkey activities! There are […]
Teaching doubles addition was always something that I enjoyed. Math always seems like the perfect opportunity to try to reach students through all different learning styles. We would do a lot of chanting, singing, game playing, and of course, the timed math fact tests. These three activities helped my students develop a strong understanding of […]
Art in the classroom isn’t always a common practice. Sometimes you just flat out don’t have enough instructional time to squeeze in crafts or art. Let me be real honest ,though–I love writing crafts in the classroom! Not only would kids get excited about them, but I would then have something to hang in the […]
One thing I have learned over the years is that no matter the child, drawing on a relevant, engaging topic that brings excitement benefits our learning environment. Depending on the time of year, it can be life cycles, animals, insects, or even pumpkins. The fall is so fun and is a great time to bring […]
Did you know that October 4-10 is National Fire Prevention Week? It would always creep up on me, and I would have to rush to find something to squeeze it in. As a child, I remember this week being a total blast at school! The firetruck would come and the firefighters would do a demonstration. […]
Mornings can be hectic sometimes in the classroom. Students arriving late, you are trying to gather homework, making sure everyone is okay and has what they need for the day, taking attendance, and sometimes even finding breakfast for a sweet little one. Gosh, it can just be tough sometimes! BUT, even with all of that, […]
In today’s world of texting, emailing, FaceTiming, and emojis it seems as though teaching handwriting to our little ones is fading. Why do they need to learn proper letter formation? Will they even ever use cursive? We have so many other things to teach! It’s just ONE more thing that we have to SQUEEZE into […]
Fall is right around the corner. That means pumpkin spice lattes, apples, and college football! Usually by the third week of school, we are ready to move from back-to-school themed books to apples. My students always enjoy apple activities as I integrate our reading and science time. Here are a few of my favorite apple […]
For Texas teachers, today was the first day back. This year I am at home again as we wait on our little girl from the Congo to be able to come home. I cry every year–not because I am ungrateful to be home or for my precious little guy that is here already, but because […]
I know what you are thinking, “What is this teal and white classroom? I thought you were staying home with your son and waiting on your adopted baby girl to come home!” You’re right. I am still at home, BUT my new sister in law and brother both are starting their first year in a […]
Being organized in the classroom doesn’t come easy for everyone, but I would like to think that I am a fairly organized person. It never failed, though. At the end of the day I looked around and I had a pile of papers that needed to be organized, but I wasn’t sure where to put […]
The back to school season is busy long before your students enter your classroom and you are in need of meet the teacher tips. I think we can all just giggle when people say that teachers only work 9 months out of the year! Even if we aren’t physically working, our brains never stop thinking […]
Parent Communication can seem like a daunting task. At the end of a long day sometimes the last thing we want to do is spend more time on the phone, writing emails, or on social media. But we have to remember one thing: Parent communication is of the utmost importance. As a teacher, you want […]
I have been using science interactive notebooks since my first year of teaching. I had a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful science teaching coach who was all about using science interactive notebooks in the classroom. It was a bit of a struggle for me to get them going. Some years were better than others for implementing them, but […]
The beginning of the school year can seem like a whirl! But in the midst of the chaos, my favorite thing to do is to get to know my students through reading when we get back to school. Not only does it grab their attention, but I love to help them fall in love with […]
I don’t know about you, but there just never seems to be enough time in my teaching day! I always over plan and have more that I want to teach than time allows. Specifically, I’m thinking about my ELAR block of time. It seems that every day I need to fit in… –Phonics –Read Aloud –Shared Reading […]
